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Blumenthal and Cuomo Win in Key Regional Races

Andrew M. Cuomo, the Democratic candidate for New York governor, voted with his girlfriend, Sandra Lee, and his daughter Michaela Cuomo, 12, in Mt. Kisco, N.Y.Credit
Damon Winter/The New York Times

Andrew M. Cuomo, whose career in government appeared all but over just eight years ago, was elected the 56th governor of New York on Tuesday, a stunning comeback for the scion of one of the state’s legendary political families.

The state’s sitting senators, Kirsten E. Gillibrand and Charles E. Schumer, easily won re-election. Results had not yet been reported in the contests for attorney general and state comptroller.

In Connecticut, Richard Blumenthal, the state attorney general and Democratic stalwart, captured the United States Senate seat being vacated by Christopher J. Dodd after staving off a fierce challenge from Linda E. McMahon, a Republican and former pro wrestling executive who spent $40 million on her insurgent campaign.

The expensive and hard-fought contest, which included accusations that Mr. Blumenthal had exaggerated his military record, was considered a national bellwether on a night when Republicans were poised to make big gains in Congress on the strength of voter resentment toward Washington.

But while Republican challengers have already picked up key Senate seats in Florida and Kentucky, Mr. Blumenthal’s victory, in a race where Republicans were hoping to poach a seat, underscored expectations that the Democrats would hold onto control of the Senate.

Mr. Blumenthal received substantial support from female voters, a group that Ms. McMahon failed to attract early in the race and may have eventually been her undoing. Mr. Blumenthal also benefited from a heavy Democratic turnout: several polling places in Bridgeport, one of the state’s major Democratic strongholds, repeatedly ran out of ballots on Tuesday, prompting officials to extend voting hours there until 10 p.m.

In her concession speech, Ms. McMahon sounded defiant as she insisted that her campaign, while unsuccessful, still amounted to a victory. “We have left no stone unturned in this race; we have made Washington listen,” she told supporters. “We are not going to fade into the woodwork.”

The race for governor in Connecticut remained too close to call. Tom Foley, a Republican wealthy businessman, had an early lead over the Democratic candidate, Dannel P. Malloy, a former mayor of Stamford. The candidates are running to replace M. Jodi Rell, the state’s retiring Republican governor.

In New York, Mr. Cuomo enjoyed support from nearly every age and income demographic in the state, according to exit polls. Two-thirds of women, and 7 out of 10 moderates, backed Mr. Cuomo, along with overwhelming majorities of black and Hispanic voters. Much of Mr. Paladino’s support came from white voters without a college education, while independent white voters were divided between the two candidates.

Photo

Carl P. Paladino, the Republican candidate for governor, voting in Buffalo.Credit
Nathaniel Brooks for The New York Times

Jimmy McMillan, who was running for governor as the candidate of the one-man Rent Is Too Damn High Party, received about 1 percent of the vote.

Votes were being counted at an extremely slow pace in the other statewide races. State Senator Eric T. Schneiderman, the Democrat, held a lead over Daniel M. Donovan Jr., the Republican district attorney from Staten Island, in the race to succeed Mr. Cuomo as attorney general.

In the state comptroller’s race, Thomas P. DiNapoli, the incumbent, was running behind his dark-horse Republican opponent, the former financier Harry J. Wilson. Polls showed that race tightening in recent weeks.

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Voters in New York City, where a new electronic voting system made its debut this year, are also being asked to decide whether politicians should be limited to two consecutive terms, a move that would reverse the legislation that allowed Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg to pursue his third term in City Hall. Early returns showed overwhelming support for restoring a two-term limit.

Fears about the state of the economy could be the determinant in many regional races on Tuesday, according to exit polls conducted by Edison Research for the National Election Pool, a consortium of the major television networks and The Associated Press.

Half of New York voters said they were very worried about the state of the economy, although Mr. Paladino’s supporters were more likely to express this sentiment. Half of the voters surveyed in New York described Mr. Cuomo as an honest candidate; only a quarter said the same of Mr. Paladino.

More than half said they approved of President Obama’s job performance, but fewer than 1 in 5 of Mr. Paladino’s supporters agreed with that statement, according to the polls. About half of New York voters said the government was performing too many services that would be better left to businesses and individuals.

Earlier on Tuesday, Mr. Paladino was asked if he would miss the stresses of the campaign trail. He laughed. “I’m not a great campaigner,” he said, adding that the process had been “treacherous” and “confusing” for him. He vowed never to do it again.

“No. More. Elections!” he called out, enunciating each word. “This is it.” And his plans for the rest of the day? A prayer service, Mr. Paladino said, followed by a nap.

Mr. Cuomo, meanwhile, spent the morning at his residence in Mount Kisco, where he voted with his companion, the television cooking personality Sandra Lee. In Yonkers, Rudolph B. Steward, Jr., 60, a military veteran and retired postal service worker, said he voted for Mr. Cuomo because he believed the Democrat would not cut his disability benefits. He said he feared what would happen if Mr. Paladino were to be elected governor.

“There was nothing about Cuomo that made me vote for him,” Mr. Stewart said. “I just did it to fight the policies of the Republicans.”